god has a sense of humor

slingbox, part 2

After much deliberation, I decided that the potential benefits of purchasing a Slingbox (I would get to watch all of my Detroit sports teams in reasonable quality) outweighed the potential negatives (I might waste $160). I had the box shipped directly to Andrew so he could set it up in Detroit. It took a bit of tinkering, but he eventually got the box working and I must say it is a wonderful product for my purposes. The quality is about what you'd expect from video streamed across the internets, not TV quality, but good enough to watch the Lions lose every week. Slingbox will be the best solution for me because I want to be able to watch all of the Detroit sports teams, something that would cost a pretty penny if I was to try to do the same through satellite. If you want a relatively inexpensive way to watch all of your home teams even while you're across the country, Slingbox is the way to go.

In other news, it's Friday!!!

not the billy bob thorton movie

For the past couple months I've been toying with the idea of purchasing a Slingbox. My idea was that I could have my parents hook it up at their house and then I would be able to watch all of the Detroit sports that I have been missing since moving away. The problem is that I have no practical experience with this technology. I've done a lot of research to see how the device works, but what I'd really like to know is the opinion of someone who owns a Slingbox. So if you own a Slingbox or know someone who does, please leave a comment or send me an e-mail to let me know if it's worth purchasing, especially for my intended use.

it was legendary

It's been a couple weeks since my last post, so here's a quick update.

Spent last weekend hanging out with Kurt and Justin. Kurt flew up for the weekend. I hadn't seen Kurt in a long time so it was really nice to be able to hang out and spend time with one of my best friends. We spent all day Saturday drinking in DC and then went to see the Violent Femmes at the 930 Club. Great show. Sunday was spent in Baltimore at Drew and Misti's house eating an incredible barbecue dinner, enjoying a few drinks, and just spending time socializing. (I'll post a picture soon.)

I purchased my tickets to fly back to Michigan over the Thanksgiving holiday. I'll get see my family and go to the Lions game. Not sure who, if anyone, will be around, so if anyone is going to be in Gaylord over Thanksgiving let me know.

hemorrhaging money

I've made a couple large purchases in the past couple of days, something I very rarely do. Neither of them were planned.

A few days ago, my computer monitor died on me. It was a 19" flat screen CRT from KDS. I wasn't too upset because I had purchased it with a pretty good rebate a few years ago. I spent around $80 on it. Luckily, I had a 17" that I was able to use as my backup, but after using a 19" flat screen for so long, it quickly became apparent that this wasn't going to cut it for long. I needed something better.

After much debating, I eventually decided to go a little overboard and buy something unnecessarily large. I purchased a Dell LCD 20.1" Ultrasharp Widescreen and it is every bit as beautiful as it sounds and for 20% off the normal price it was easily worth it (it even has Picture-in-Picture, which I find absurd).

Today I purchased a pair of items that were also expensive and won't even last me as long as the monitor. I had decided months ago to go to the Lions' Thanksgiving Day game with my dad and knew that I could get tickets from Ticketmaster when they went on sale today. I should have been able to, but I screwed it up and lost the tickets. Determined to go, I bought a couple of tickets off Stubhub instead (which is a great site because you can get tickets to anything, just expect to pay a little more). The tickets cost more than I had expected since I wasn't able to get them at face value, but instead of sitting in the upper bowl, my dad and I will now be sitting in the lower bowl, row 14, at the back of the endzone. I can't wait.

it's funny...

...because it's true.

today's post brought to you by the word "ass"

At work yesterday, my boss had issues with the word "assess" that Tysen had used in a memo. He said it looked like "asses", which it sort of does, but in the context it would be impossible to get the two confused. Of course, he wanted to change it, Tysen wanted it to stay, and I didn't care, but found the conversation endlessly entertaining. So, Tysen and I made a few creative changes to the memo to include as many words beginning with ass we could find. Here is my paragraph:

The assertive assistant assassinated the assay before the assurgent associate could asseverate it. The associate is an assiduous asshole for assigning the assistant to assemble assorted asses and assuage the assumptions of the assault. We must assail the associate with assegais until he assents to assess the associate's assimilation and assure us it is an asset.

You can check out Tysen's paragraph here.

why do you always do this, metro?

I've had some interesting experiences on the Metro recently, and not all of them enjoyable.

Last weekend, Tysen and I went to a party at his friend's house. The party started at 10pm and we left around 8pm because the blue line was undergoing maintenance and would probably take an extra half hour to get where we were going. Even with the work on the trains, leaving at 8pm should have put us at the part a little early. Instead, we didn't arrive at the party until 11pm. Half way between Van Dorn and King Street, our train broke down. We had to wait until they could bring another train to pull our train back to Van Dorn. Then, they put us on a different train to King Street. It took a really long time and I was very anxious to get to this party. Still, we didn't get upset and just relaxed and eventually made it to our destination. On the plus side, our delay allowed us time to strike up a conversation with a guy on the metro named Riley. He was in a marine officer training program and just up visiting his girlfriend in DC. He was interesting to talk to. I hope he made it to his destination.

The following Monday, on our way to work, the entire metro station at Springfield closed down. Apparently, it was out of power. Instead, metro bussed everyone from Springfield to Van Dorn. We waited for quite a while before a woman, who apparently needed to get to work very badly, offered to give us a ride in her car so she could take the HOV (carpool) lane. We weren't even an hour late for work after that. It makes me wonder if it would be worth it to drive in every day.

Then there was the guy who tried to get me to sign up for Amway (or something like it). In case you don't know, Amway is essentially a pyramid scheme. It is possible to make money doing it, but most people don't. He initiated the conversation by "accidentally" bumping into me, then asking me where I worked and other random questions. He seemed like a nice guy, but I was wary since he was talking on the metro, which normal people do not do. I quickly figured out what he was trying to sell me, but I let him talk since listening to him was more interesting than standing on the train trying not to make eye contact with the other passengers. Maybe if I see him again I'll give him pointers on his approach.

The last of my metro stories, but certainly not the least interesting, happened when I was waiting for a train (I think it was at Metro Center). One of the pay phones started ringing and a girl answered it, listened for a second, then hung up saying, "Well that was incredibly inappropriate." The phone started ringing again and the girl's boyfriend picked up the phone, said something I couldn't hear, then hung up. I walked over and asked them what the person had said. Apparently, a very man with a very low, whispery voice said, "I want to suck your pussy." "That was friendly," was the only thing I could think to say. What would posses someone to do such a thing? People amaze me.

In an somewhat unrelated matter, on Wednesday I went on my first date since moving to DC. It was fun. Maybe I'll see her again.

back in the swing of things

Have you ever been to a movie you were tempted to walk out of? I never thought this would happen to me, but I was wrong. I went to see Miami Vice last week and it was every bit as bad as I imagined it would be. The dialogue was just terrible, on a level with Star Wars: Episode II (yes, it was that bad). The directing was bad to the point of being distracting, which is odd considering the same man directed Heat and the Last of the Mohicans. Despite all of that, the reason I felt like leaving is because I was bored. That's it. If this had been a rental or just a movie I found while flipping channels on my TV at home I would not have watched more than five minutes of it.

I wasn't surprised by how bad the movie was (I expected as much), but I was surprised by the lack of anything interesting happening.

Last night I watched WarGames (Blogger's spell check wanted to replace "WarGames" with "arguing". What?) on TV. Despite the fact that the film is so outdated it made me laugh (monitors with only the ability to display black backgrounds and green text, huge computer banks with randomly flashing lights that apparently mean something to someone), it really is one of the best "hacker/computer" movies out there.

Tysen, Kathryn and I have tickets to a free pre-screening of Little Miss Sunshine tonight. I'm looking forward to it from the previews. I've always thought Greg Kinnear was funnier than he got credit for.

Don is coming to visit me in a couple weeks. Should be a lot of fun. It's been a while since I've seen him (New Years).

updates galore

Wow, it's been well over a month since I've posted to my blog. At least now I know people do visit here once in a while because I was reprimanded by several people for not updating.

Another opinion is that I haven't been updating because I finally have a life, but we all know that's not really the case.

So much has happened since my last post, meaning this post will most likely be a rambling of sorts while I try to remember all points of interest.

Emily visited last weekend and I had a great time. We checked out the bar just across the street from my apartment which, for reasons I cannot explain, I had never visited before. It's a bit of a yuppie bar, but not a bad place to have a beer and watch part of a game. I may visit there once in a while now that I know what it's like.

We spent all of Monday in DC. We visited all of the big monuments and more. Both of us were totally worn out by the day to the point where we barely left the apartment on Tuesday. We didn't go into DC for the 4th of July fireworks because of the rain, but I wasn't very disappointed. Maybe I'll go next year if I'm looking for something to do. (Kathryn posted a cool picture she took of the fireworks on her blog.)

On Sunday Em and I spent the day watching the World Cup and drinking. By the evening, we had polished off a couple white russians, a bottle of wine, and some beer. We were inebriated. We then sat out on my balcony, in the rain, watching the spectacular thunder storm, and singing Red Elvises songs, while Della Resse told Richard Pryor in Harlem Nights to, "Kiss my entire ass!" It was a good night.

You can check out some of the pictures Emily took of the visit on her blog.

The weekend before, Greg came to visit and we also had a great time. On Saturday we met Justin, Matt, and Drew at the Old Dominion Beer Festival, drank some good beer and bullshitted all day. I can't ask for much more than that.

On Tuesday we went to Georgetown and met up with a couple of Greg's college friends, Jeremiah and Autumn. They were really cool and hopefully I'll be hanging out with them more in the future.

While I was at work Monday and Tuesday, Greg spent the day sightseeing. Unfortunately for him, it rained constantly for both days causing less than favorable conditions and the closing of a couple Smithsonian buildings (probably due to flooding or power loss). Of course, the weather cleared up the day after he left.

While staying at my place, Greg introduced me to a series of graphic novels called the Last Man. I picked up the first one at a comic shop in Woodbridge (along with Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men, Volume 1). After reading that first book, I'm really looking forward to picking up the second one (along with Astonishing X-Men, Vol. 2). I'm a comic book nerd.

I also ordered books V and VI of Stephen King's Dark Tower series. I can't wait to read these, as the first four books have been by far the best Stephen King books I've ever read.

Last night, I went with Justin, Tysen, and Kathryn to a pre-screening of a Scanner Darkly. It was both interesting and strange. Justin said, "I think Philip K. Dick was a heroin addict," and I am inclined to agree. The entire film uses rotoscope animation, enhancing the already odd feel of the movie. If you're a fan of the sci-fi distopia genre, you'd probably enjoy this film.

Those are enough updates for now. There's a sizable chunk of information for you to chew on, compared to what I usually post.

it wasn't even cool back then

On Saturday, I spent most of the day in D.C. with Justin, Misti, Drew, and Drew's family. It was a lot of fun. Drew's dad seemed like a really cool, laid-back guy. We spent all day downtown eating lunch, drinking beer, and sightseeing. I even got to make it to the American History Smithsonian to see the new Muppet exhibit. It was a lot smaller than I expected, but it still had some interesting stuff. If you're a fan of the Muppets you should check it out. It was a long and exhausting day, but I enjoyed it.

When I got home from that excursion, I flicked on the television and, for reasons I cannot explain, stopped on the local cable access channel. They had different musicians on singing protest songs, mostly concerning the war in Iraq. It was interesting, but at the same time I couldn't help laughing just a little bit. These guys took themselves a little too seriously. Still, I admire their musical ability (something I do not have) and their fortitude to stand up for what they believe in.

Another issue of growing concern is the ongoing revival of 80s fashion. How can this be happening? In general, this movement appears to be limited to young girls, high school or early college age. I'm no expert on fashion, as anyone who has seen my wardrobe can attest, but can these girls actually think they look good? I think the vast majority of these girls have no idea they are imitating the stiles of the 80s. Sure, my generation imitated the trends of the 70s, but we knew what we were doing. We just didn't care.

Can anyone out there answer these questions for me?

• Do they think they look good?
• Do they know they are imitating the 80s?
• Were the 80s ever actually cool?
• When did wind chimes become a proper replacement for earrings?
• Isn't wearing a skirt over top of pants excessive?
• Can I start wearing those MC Hammer pants I've been saving?
• What's the fastest animal in the world?
• Do we need to worry teenagers will resurrect other crappy trends?
  

And while we're on the subject, are the children of this generation less intelligent than those of my generation? This is the way it appears to me and a number of other people my age. Are we, as a society, losing intelligence, beginning with our youth? If so, why? Or does every generation feel this way about the younger generations?

no news is good news

I would appreciate hearing some good news today. Post a comment containing good news, or least something that will put a smile on the faces of those who read it.

rfk is a hole

One of the nice things about moving to DC is that I now have a professional soccer team to call my very own. There is no MLS team in Detroit (probably because they would end up being known as the Detroit Violence, but that's another story). I feel no desire to cheer for any of the other DC sports teams, such as the Redskins or Capitals, but I'm certain this is because I already have favorite teams that cover these areas and have allegiance to more than one team in a sport can lead to trouble.

So now I have my soccer team. This last weekend was my first trip to see them live at RFK stadium in DC. I enjoyed everything about this experience, the game itself, the friendly and soccer-knowledgeable fans around me, and the crazy fans on the other size of the stadium jumping up and down and making their entire section shake (I wanted to be in that section!).

My one complaint is with RFK and those who have been there know what I mean. It is probably the worst stadium to see a sporting event that I have ever been in. It looks really nice from the outside, but inside it is small, old, and just worn-down. Our seats ended and dropped down into an area of just nothing. Here's a picture I took of it with my phone:


It will be better for everyone involved, especially fans and players, when they finally build this team a new soccer-specific stadium.

he's watching you

Ceiling Cat

so true

"All I want from life is to be a monkey of moderate intelligence who wears a suit. That's why I've decided to transfer to business school!"-
-Futurama

royals fans are worth $278.47

If you know me, you know that I am a sports fan.

That may be a bit of an understatement.

I love sports. In fact, watching sports is one of the few pure joys I have in life (next to the smell of bacon and the good feeling of a really long urination). Being sports fan can be tough, every year seeing your favorite team failing over and over again (Lions), but there's nothing I can do. At least that what I used to think.

This guy sold his fan allegiance on eBay. The winner of the auction got to choose the team he would cheer for from that point on. What a fantastic idea. Despite my desire to actually pull for a team that would win once in a while, I could never give up on the Lions.

Why? Because every game has to have a loser, and misery is part of what I love about sports.

fun with science

This weekend I went down to Newport News to visit with Emily and Greg. I had a great time seeing my two best friends. The weather was beautiful the whole time I was down there and Greg and I took full advantage by playing a little frisbee. Mostly the three of just just hung out in Emily's apartment or at the bar or a restaurant.

The most exciting part of the weekend was the science experiment we performed. On his way out here, Greg was listening to NPR and heard that putting Mentos inside of a two liter of soda makes the soda shoot out the top of bottle. Sounded like fun to us, so we gave it a try and it was worth it! We used Diet Coke because that supposedly produces the best results. Check out these pictures (you can click on the picture to see all four).

As you can see, the experiment was a big success. You just drop as many Mentos in at a time as you can and back up, no need to shake the bottle or anything. I don't understand the science behind this; all I know is that it's incredibly cool. Give it a try.

people watching, part 2

Interesting thought: if the metro had a bar, everyone would be social.

people watching

As I am sure you are aware, it can often be interesting and entertaining to observe people and their behavior. For example, on the metro yesterday I watched a woman who changed seats every time the metro stopped. She never sat in the same place twice and didn't seem to care if she was sitting next to someone or not. She did this for five or six stops, until she finally exited the train.

What was going through her mind as she moved from seat to seat? Was there some sort of purpose or pattern that I could not detect? Am I giving too much thought to the odd behavior of a crazy person?

To me, the most bizarre behavior on the metro is the lack of any conversation. The tourists are always easy to spot because they are the only ones talking (and usually about what stop they are getting off at and their general confusion with the metro system). In my two months of metro travels, I've managed only two genuine conversations: one with a guy wearing a Lions jersey and the other with a girl talking about hockey.

Possible conclusion: the only subject I'm comfortable talking to strangers about is sports.

overheard at work

I walked into the men's room at work today just in time to hear one guy standing at the urinals say to the other guy standing at the urinals, "Yeah, but that's too small for the office."